Dissecting the Language of MMOs - Kotaku Comments

Dissecting the Language of MMOs

PsycheDiver — Mon, 14 Jan 2008 16:34:09 MST

There needs to be a book about all this, with interviews from MMO companies and every shorthand term in use. Even specific terms for certain games could be added on an accompanying site later.

PsycheDiver

Dissecting the Language of MMOs

Camann — Mon, 14 Jan 2008 07:52:52 MST

No mention of "mob"?

That one threw me for a loop when I was new. A mob is a single enemy (mobile object), and not the common definition as a whole group.

I've also never seen or used re, bio, or dd. I don't think I've even seen wb other than my own usage, generally when someone leaves a group and returns, not just from afk.

Here's a good list of them: [www.gamefaqs.com]

Granted, it's for WoW, but it's an actual list which could be useful as a reference.

Camann

Dissecting the Language of MMOs

fuchikoma — Mon, 14 Jan 2008 01:15:53 MST

I'll have to read that later. I've played over a half dozen MMOs and from "4/6 lfm tank and dd" I made out "tank." The rest wasn't part of the vernacular in any of the ones I've played...

fuchikoma

Dissecting the Language of MMOs

thejakeman has died of dysentry — Sun, 13 Jan 2008 22:21:57 MST

Nazi's used the phrase SS. Godwins law FTW!

thejakeman has died of dysentry

Dissecting the Language of MMOs

Fett101 — Sun, 13 Jan 2008 21:44:53 MST

Article made me think of this.
[youtube.com]

Fett101

Dissecting the Language of MMOs

Korey — Sun, 13 Jan 2008 20:54:08 MST

@creid: [www.worldofwarcraft.com]

Korey

Dissecting the Language of MMOs

Rez — Sun, 13 Jan 2008 20:40:16 MST

Direct Damage referred to a caster class, like a mage or a wizard in EQ, not describing them but their damage dealing ability. They could deal a lot of damage in a short period of time, unlike a rogue or necromancer.

Rez

Dissecting the Language of MMOs

creid — Sun, 13 Jan 2008 20:39:54 MST

Where can I get a bigger version of this picture?

creid

Dissecting the Language of MMOs

Sugoi — Sun, 13 Jan 2008 20:15:23 MST

Generally speaking we always said DD vs AOE DPS. DD being a rogue or fury warrior or hunter, while AOE DPS would obviously be a mage, warlock, etc.

I honestly thought it was decent for being so very general, but getting twink and alt confused was a pretty huge faux pax. There's a big difference between the two, so I'm surprised the author screwed that up.

Sugoi

Dissecting the Language of MMOs

Tuor — Sun, 13 Jan 2008 19:45:49 MST

The author also referred to tank and dps as classes. They're not classes; they're roles assumed within a group. While in most MMOs, warrior/fighters make the best tanks, they are rarely the only class able to tank: other classes can do it too, just not as well (example: Paladin in EQ or even in WoW).

I think it would've been more effective if the author had mentioned that certain classes are best geared to certain roles in a group.

Oh, and as to DD vs DPS. Archetype has it right, though it appears that the distinction between the two is getting weaker, at least in some games. In EQ, it was good to know if someone was good at DD or was good at sticking DoTs on an enemy.

Tuor

Dissecting the Language of MMOs

Livid — Sun, 13 Jan 2008 19:26:15 MST

An article like this is never complete until "pwned' is brought up.

Livid

Dissecting the Language of MMOs

d1sCo_d3aTh — Sun, 13 Jan 2008 18:54:58 MST

LF39M Molten Core.

d1sCo_d3aTh

Dissecting the Language of MMOs

mightyg — Sun, 13 Jan 2008 18:25:00 MST

as Torusan pointed out, some terms very depending on the game. ffxi ftw (for the win)!

mightyg

Dissecting the Language of MMOs

gifurocks — Sun, 13 Jan 2008 18:10:23 MST

I like how the comments are breaking down nitpicking who uses DD and who uses DPS to refer to a damage dealing class. I think its obvious this article was not meant for Kotaku readers. That typo with the twinks and the alts is so noob. :P

gifurocks

Dissecting the Language of MMOs

Maldron — Sun, 13 Jan 2008 18:08:04 MST

@Archetype: We just referred to that as "burst" vs "sustained" damage. Not even just that, there were so many words for ways to deal damage, if we wanted damage dealers, we asked for DPS.

Maldron

Dissecting the Language of MMOs

Torusan — Sun, 13 Jan 2008 18:01:38 MST

We use DD in FFXI where a lot of the players assume it means damage dealer versus direct damage. The players prefer it over DPS to differentiate between physical damage (direct damage) and magical damage, which consists of bursts or DoT.

Torusan

Dissecting the Language of MMOs

Digitalguardian — Sun, 13 Jan 2008 17:53:51 MST

People list people currently in group now? I must be getting old.

Digitalguardian

Dissecting the Language of MMOs

Archetype — Sun, 13 Jan 2008 17:30:41 MST

DPS is the term generally used for damage dealing characters. DD usually refers to a type of attack (Direct Damage) as opposed to a DoT (Damage over Time).

Archetype

Dissecting the Language of MMOs

Daremonai — Sun, 13 Jan 2008 16:56:13 MST

Article also fails to mention all the abbreviations for instances and dungeons in a game. I dont really know about LotRO or GW, but in wow, a LFM/LFG message usually is followed by the name of the instance, abbreviated.

LF3M SL, have tank, need CC, DPS

Daremonai

Dissecting the Language of MMOs

syp — Sun, 13 Jan 2008 16:35:54 MST

GW is probably the only MMO thats adopted the "-way" in its lingo based on team builds. IWAY, ViMWay, Heroway, Paraway, SWAY (spirit way), Ursan-way, etc. Then theres RSpike, Bloodspike, Rainbowspike, FCspike etc. SS/SV with BR lf 55 for 50/50 in UW.

syp

Dissecting the Language of MMOs

HfAsianInvasion — Sun, 13 Jan 2008 16:35:01 MST

So many factual inaccuracies in that article...

"Char or Avatar for short" is my favorite. I guess the author has never heard of the word "character".

HfAsianInvasion

Dissecting the Language of MMOs

Shadowmist — Sun, 13 Jan 2008 16:26:22 MST

Sounds like the article was written from an EQ player's perspective, since I recognize some from my old days back in Norrath. Especially the 4/6 makes me think EQ. Most I don't see in Azeroth anymore, and have new iterations and stuff. Had no idea there was a /bio command for restroom breaks in any of the mmorpg's I've played though...

And for the record, though I believe the one who said it was a troll, GW is not a "very cut down version of WoW". It's a game done in a completely different style. I've played and enjoyed both. If anything, they were based off EQ, which explains the common jargon they both use. And EQ came from Ultima, and that from D&D and so on.

Shadowmist

Dissecting the Language of MMOs

belo — Sun, 13 Jan 2008 16:18:04 MST

@-EDGE-: eh... thats abit more hardcore than mmo slang, i would think.

belo

Dissecting the Language of MMOs

zerokoolpsx — Sun, 13 Jan 2008 16:17:20 MST

@VipingViper:
dps = "damage per second"

zerokoolpsx

Dissecting the Language of MMOs

zerokoolpsx — Sun, 13 Jan 2008 16:16:38 MST

I don't think anyone really says dd, unless they we're playing ff11. Most just say dps instead.

zerokoolpsx

Dissecting the Language of MMOs

VipingViper — Sun, 13 Jan 2008 16:14:11 MST

@Fbu: I have no idea what dps is.

We say DD in FFXI.

VipingViper

Dissecting the Language of MMOs

Sunjammer — Sun, 13 Jan 2008 16:07:43 MST

I know i'm a broken record on this, but MMORPGs are satan. They must all be destroyed. You don't really have to do a separate lineage on it, because it's called "racketeering", and it's been around for a while.

Sunjammer

Dissecting the Language of MMOs

Sun, 13 Jan 2008 15:51:07 MST

True Story: I went to a Star Trek convention some time ago and there were quite a few people dressed up like Klingons. Long story short I got kocked into by one of them. The guy starts going off on me and I can't understand a word he is saying. I'm like WTF you bumped into me, but hey sorry just the same. Next thing I know a person in a full Star Fleet uniform walks up to me and asks if I need a translator. Now I'm a bit like...ummm what? Turns out the guy was speaking "Klingon" to me, and no shit there were books on the language for sale.

Anyhow, my thoughts were, shit I had a hard enough time learning another language in school...but Klingon?
I'm not trying to down play someones hobby or the importance of learning an "Intergalactic" language.

Anyhow, on point I just think it's pretty cool how a language or means of communication developes over time. Games like WoW and many of the early games have almost a unique language to the players.

Dissecting the Language of MMOs

Winterbringer — Sun, 13 Jan 2008 15:48:28 MST

@HigglyPiggly: Guild Wars is just a very cut down version of WoW, so yea people pretty much use all the same abreviations. Infact, most of Guild Wars spell names are similair to that of WoW's too, so they might be near identical in terms of game specifics.

Winterbringer

Dissecting the Language of MMOs

Gadzooks149 — Sun, 13 Jan 2008 15:09:43 MST

i really hate it when people try to make an article to help people, only to leave them just where they were at the beginning.

It started out decent, but once it got to "Bio automatically sets you afk and freezes the game".....

Gadzooks149

Dissecting the Language of MMOs

Quine — Sun, 13 Jan 2008 15:05:36 MST

oh and, none of those terms apply to RO (ragnarok online). I know it isn't heavily played, but its just evidence that those terms are largely unused by most mmos.

B>+7 SGH 7m, N>FS for GY/P2, z plz!

Quine

Dissecting the Language of MMOs

edb87 — Sun, 13 Jan 2008 15:01:30 MST

Is it bad that I play a free MMO that uses no such language, and I still knew what that meant?

edb87

Dissecting the Language of MMOs

qin — Sun, 13 Jan 2008 14:56:23 MST

@Moonshadow101: Yeah, when I first read the term dd it was in EQ and stood for direct damage.

qin

Dissecting the Language of MMOs

Neomatrix002 — Sun, 13 Jan 2008 14:54:45 MST

Does anybody know the source of the article image?

Neomatrix002

Dissecting the Language of MMOs

Quine — Sun, 13 Jan 2008 14:54:12 MST

omgwtfbbq tmgsa (too many game specific acronyms)

Quine

Dissecting the Language of MMOs

HigglyPiggly — Sun, 13 Jan 2008 14:49:13 MST

i play guild wars so theres some different terms but wow might have them... lfgm, glfm, wts, wtb, ss, mm... the list goes on and on...

HigglyPiggly

Dissecting the Language of MMOs

dunetiger reads kotaku, seems pleased — Sun, 13 Jan 2008 14:41:07 MST

I don't think MMO speech is half as bad as table-top speech, but that's just me.

dunetiger reads kotaku, seems pleased

Dissecting the Language of MMOs

The Amazing Exploding-Man — Sun, 13 Jan 2008 14:34:37 MST

This is not standard for all MMOs. Especially WoW.

In WoW dps (damage per second) is used instead of dd.

An alt is an alternate lesser (but usually not 'rarely') used character. A twink is a low level alt that is given gear that most new players at that level would not have through normal gameplay due to lack of luck, funds and social network. T

I have never seen the term 'linkdead' in WoW. Generally someone will say dc'd which is shorthand for disconnected.

Mainchar is usually shortened to main. Sometimes I see main toon (a toon being another word for character.)

The Amazing Exploding-Man

Dissecting the Language of MMOs

Maldron — Sun, 13 Jan 2008 14:32:16 MST

@iamnotdryad: I agree. Really, I picked up the language quickly, but it's not something I ever use outside of people who play MMOs, and only when talking about MMOs.

Maldron

Dissecting the Language of MMOs

StopTheOncoming — Sun, 13 Jan 2008 14:30:12 MST

Very badly written..

StopTheOncoming

Dissecting the Language of MMOs

DeLoRtEd1 — Sun, 13 Jan 2008 14:28:58 MST

ni hao?

DeLoRtEd1

Dissecting the Language of MMOs

iamnotdryad — Sun, 13 Jan 2008 14:27:23 MST

I never really heard people say "mainchar." We just said "main" for our primary character.

Not too bad of an article for inexperienced players, though. It's kind of interesting, too. I played WoW for over two years but had never really thought about the degree of language that an outsider would shrug his shoulders at.

iamnotdryad

Dissecting the Language of MMOs

Moonshadow101 — Sun, 13 Jan 2008 14:26:48 MST

@MugiMugi: Never heard that iteration of DD. I'd always heard Direct Damage.

Moonshadow101

Dissecting the Language of MMOs

MugiMugi — Sun, 13 Jan 2008 14:22:20 MST

@oofgeg: DPS meens Damage Per Second, DD meens Damage Dealer.

MugiMugi

Dissecting the Language of MMOs

LeJerk — Sun, 13 Jan 2008 14:20:50 MST

What a badly written article. It almost sounds like a hastily written paper for a school assignment. Proofread much? The formatting is horrible. Do they know you can do more with a web page than blocks of text? Even some line breaks for that "info box" would be nice.

The author states some things as facts that I believe only apply to specific games, not a general fact about MMO games. I've never heard anyone say 4/6. WoW had 5 player dungeons. "Bio" does not automatically set you afk from what I remember.

I have more gripes with it, but I've said enough. Blah.

LeJerk

Dissecting the Language of MMOs

Maldron — Sun, 13 Jan 2008 14:15:09 MST

@Quark: So they did.

Maldron

Dissecting the Language of MMOs

Quark — Sun, 13 Jan 2008 14:12:00 MST

"Twink: Additional, rarely used playing character"

Huh? Methinks they missed the point of what seperates a "twink" from an "alt".

Quark

Dissecting the Language of MMOs

Oofgeg — Sun, 13 Jan 2008 14:11:02 MST

@Fbu:
Yeah, I play WoW and I wasn't sure what dd stood for when I just read it, but I figured it meant dps.

Oofgeg

Dissecting the Language of MMOs

Loyal2none — Sun, 13 Jan 2008 14:09:54 MST

This is well done. I am sure we all have lots of input on what else they should have included.

A few of my coworkers know a lot about the MMO lingo and have never played an MMO.

They have simply been involved in conversations about a game and have picked up some of the lingo.

They love to listen to the stories since it is like someone explaining an adventure book to them.

Loyal2none

Dissecting the Language of MMOs

Fbu — Sun, 13 Jan 2008 14:06:32 MST

I don't think anyone says "dd" over "dps"

Fbu

Dissecting the Language of MMOs

Fbu — Sun, 13 Jan 2008 14:05:42 MST

LF1M Need healer

Fbu